Programme Specification for the BSc in Medical Sciences with ...

Programme Specification for the BSc in Medical Sciences with Surgery and Anaesthesia 

PLEASE NOTE. This specification provides a concise summary of the main features of the 

programme and the learning outcomes that a typical student might reasonably be expected to achieve 

and demonstrate if he/she takes full advantage of the learning opportunities that are provided. This 

specification provides a source of information for students and prospective students seeking an 

understanding of the nature of the programme and may be used by the College for review purposes 

and sent to external examiners. More detailed information on the learning outcomes, content and 

teaching, learning and assessment methods of each module can be found in the course handbook or 

on-line at https://education.med.imperial.ac.uk/Years/4-1011/surg/index.htm. The accuracy of the 

information contained in this document is reviewed by the College and may be checked by the Quality 

Assurance Agency. 

1. Awarding Institution: Imperial College London 

2. Teaching Institution: Imperial College London 

3. External Accreditation by Professional / Statutory Body: Not applicable 

4. Name of Final Award (BEng / BSc / MEng etc): BSc (Honours) 

5. Programme Title (e.g. Biochemistry with Management): Medical Sciences with Surgery and 

Anaesthesia 

6. Name of Department / Division: Undergraduate Medicine 

7. Name of Faculty: Faculty of Medicine 

8. UCAS Code (or other coding system if relevant): A125 

9. Relevant QAA Subject Benchmarking Group(s) and/or other external/internal reference 

points: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/academicinfrastructure/benchmark/honours/medicine.pdf 

10. Level(s) of programme within the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications (FHEQ): 

Bachelor’s (BSc, BEng, MBBS) Level 6 

Integrated Master’s (MSci, MEng) Levels 6 and 7 

Master’s (MSc, MRes) Level 7 

11. Mode of Study: Full Time 

12. Language of Study: English 

13. Date of production / revision of this programme specification (month/year): October 2010 

14. Educational aims/objectives of the programme: 

The programme aims/objectives are to: 

• attract motivated students and teach them in a way that encourages originality of thought and 

breadth of vision; 

• provide a supportive learning environment, underpinned by world class research; 

• provide distinctive modules at each level (Years 3 and 4 of the MBBS/BSc degree) within 

appropriate areas of surgery and anaesthesia, drawing on the expertise and strengths of our 

academic staff and external experts; 

1 Medical Sciences with Surgery and Anaesthesia

• produce graduates well trained in research skills; 

• foster the ability to work independently and as part of a group, and to develop academic 

communication skills, both written and oral; 

• ensure that students can identify the physiological and pathological processes underlying 

surgery and anaesthesia and can understand the relevance and application of these principles to 

clinical practice 

15. Programme Learning Outcomes (please list the programme learning outcomes under the 

headings that follow. Please also list the teaching/learning methods and strategies used to promote 

the programme learning outcomes. Module learning outcomes can be listed within Module 

Handbooks and are not required for this section): 

Institutions have an obligation to respond to individual needs and must have due regard to the need to 

eliminate unlawful disability discrimination and to promote equality of opportunity. To meet the 

expectations of the Disability Equality Duty (DED), institutions should be pro-active in anticipating the 

variety of possible requirements that disabled students may have, rather than making adjustments for 

students on an ad hoc basis. This document should list all the skills needed for students to meet the 

learning outcomes of the programme and may be used by the College’s Disability Advisory Service 

when considering reasonable adjustments to assessment. You may find the following link to the 

College Disability Advisory Service useful when completing this section: 

http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/disabilityadvisoryservice 

1. Knowledge and Understanding 

Knowledge and Understanding of: 

1. scientific techniques and approaches 

available in surgery and anaesthesia; 

2. how to formulate hypotheses, experimental 

design and developing a research plan; 

3. critical evaluation of scientific papers; 

4. cardiovascular, neural and endocrine 

responses of the human body during surgery 

and anaesthesia; 

5. the contribution of genetic factors in risk 

assessment for surgery and anaesthesia and 

targeting of therapies for individual patients; 

6. tissue regeneration, compensation and 

healing in the context of cancer as a model of 

surgical success or failure; 

7. the design and body’s response to implants 

and the mechanical and physiological impact 

of different materials; 

8. the mechanisms of anaesthetic and 

analgesic action and applied pharmacology; 

9. imaging techniques, robotics, minimally 

invasive surgery, and safety in healthcare; 

10. sepsis, shock, peri and post-operative 

infections and biology in the context of organ 

transplantation; 

Teaching/learning methods and strategies 

Acquisition of 1. to 5.is through the 2 week 

foundation course at the start of Year 4. 

Lectures are an integral part of all modules and 

are supported by a variety of other teaching and 

learning methods, including tutorials, seminars, 

problem based learning, work-shops, laboratory 

work, computer-based work and coursework. 

Throughout, students are encouraged to 

undertake independent reading both to 

supplement and consolidate what is being 

taught/learnt and to broaden their individual 

knowledge and understanding of the subject. 

Directed learning in the form of small group 

project work and presentations will be used to 

foster team work and develop generic 

transferable skills. Independent assignments 

include written and oral presentations, and the 

research project/dissertation. 

Assessment of the knowledge base is through a 

combination of unseen written examinations, 

assessed coursework in the form of essays, 

reports, debates and presentations, and the 

individual research project report and 

presentation. 

2. Skills and other Attributes 

Intellectual Skills (lateral and critical thinking, logic): 

Be able to: 


1. analyse and solve clinical and basic science Intellectual skills are developed through the 

problems in surgery and anaesthesia; teaching and learning methods outlined above 


2. integrate and evaluate information; 

3. formulate and test hypotheses using 

appropriate experimental design and 

statistical analysis of data; 

4. plan, conduct and write-up a programme of 

original research. 

and in section 17. Information sifting and sorting, 

analysis and problem solving skills are promoted 

through the use of group exercises and in the 

research project. 

Experimental design and statistical skills are 

developed in lectures, practicals, presentations in 

the foundation and core courses. The knowledge 

and research methods are further extended and 

put to practical use in the supervised research 

project. Individual, formative and summative 

feedback is given to students on all work 

produced including oral presentations. 

Assessment is through coursework, unseen 

written examinations and project work. 

Practical Skills (experimental design, data analysis, research skills): 


Be able to: 

1. plan and execute safely a basic science or Practical skills are developed through the teaching 

clinical research project; 

and learning programme outlined above (and in 

2. use laboratory or other methods to 

section 17). 

generate data and hypotheses; 

Practical research skills (1. to 3.) are developed 

3. analyse experimental results and determine 

through laboratory and project work. 

their strength and validity; 

4. and 5. are taught and developed through 

4. prepare technical reports; 

academic communication sessions in the 

5. give technical presentations; 

Foundation Course, feedback on reports and 

6. use the scientific literature effectively; 

presentations made as part of coursework 

7. use statistical tools and packages. 

assignments. 

6. is developed through lectures, coursework 

reports and essays, group project exercises and 

the individual supervised research project. 

7. is taught and developed through coursework 

exercises and project work. 

Practical skills are assessed through laboratory 

experiment write-ups, coursework reports and the 

research project dissertation. 

Transferable Skills (initiative, group work, independent thought etc): 


Be able to: 

1. communicate effectively through oral Transferable skills are developed through the 

presentations, computer processing and teaching and learning programme outlined above 

presentations, and written reports; 

and in section 17. 

2. apply statistical skills; 

1. is taught through coursework and developed 

3. work independently and as part of a team; through feedback on reports, essays and oral 

4. integrate and evaluate information from a presentations. 

variety of sources; 

2. is taught through lectures and practical work 

5. use Information and Communications and developed, as appropriate, during individual 

Technology; 

research projects. 

6. manage resources and time; 

3. is developed through coursework, practical 

7. learn independently with open-mindedness sessions and the project. 

and critical enquiry; 

4. is developed throughout the course and the 

8. learn effectively for the purpose of 

research project. 

continuing professional development. 6. is developed throughout the course within a 

framework of staged coursework deadlines and 

examination system. 

7. and 8. are taught in the Foundation Course 


and developed throughout the course, which is 

structured and delivered in such a way as to 

promote this. 

1. is assessed through coursework, presentations 

and written examinations. 

2. to 5. are assessed through coursework, 

including project work. 

4. is also assessed through written examinations. 

8. is encouraged by use of student learning 

summaries 

16. The following reference points were used in creating this programme specification (please 

choose from the following and add any other external reference points used: FHEQ, European Higher 

Education Area (EHEA), Course Handbook, Subject Benchmark Statements (where appropriate), 

Professional Statutory and Regulatory Bodies (PSRB) documents etc) 

• Student Handbook for Course; 

• QAA guidelines for preparing Programme Specifications (www.qaa.ac.uk). 

17. Programme structure and features, curriculum units (modules), ECTS assignment and 

award requirements (for each year of study, please complete the structure for each term (including 

what modules or course units will be taken and indicate whether there are any pre-requisites). Please 

also provide information about progression between years. Please indicate whether placement 

activity will apply to your programme, for example, year abroad): 

The degree programme is offered as a full-time course embedded within the MBBS degree course 

and leads to the BSc Honours Degree in Medical Sciences with Surgery and Anaesthesia. All 

students take the same MBBS first, second and third year course modules. Students taking the 

Medical Sciences with Surgery and Anaesthesia degree option must complete a two week foundation 

course in the autumn term of year 4 and have to complete an in-course assessment to progress to the 

full course. Year 4 core modules 1-3 are examined in the spring term. The BSc year continues with 

students taking either a full-time 10-week independent research project or a specialist course, each 

equating 2 modules. Students taking the research project are assessed by oral presentation and 

project write-up. Students taking one of the three available specialist courses are assessed by oral 

presentation and mini-project write-up. 

Year One: Not applicable 

Term one: 

Term Two: 

Term Three: 

Year Two (if applicable): Not applicable 

Term one: 

Term Two: 

Term Three: 

Year Three (if applicable): 

Term one: 2-week BSc Foundation course in Surgery and Anaesthesia with the following aims 

and objectives: 

• Analyse and interpret data, using relevant statistics where appropriate 

• Understand the concept of developing and testing a hypothesis 


• Understand the principles of experimental design 

• Understand the concept of plagiarism and how to avoid it 

• Have had experience of written scientific communication 

• Understand the fundamental principles and practice of scientific research 

• Appreciate the legal and ethical issues surrounding scientific research 

• Critically review scientific literature 

• To understand and apply the principles of team working 

Term Two: Not applicable 

Term Three: Not applicable 

Year Four (if applicable): 

Term One: After a two week introductory course, students commence the first module of Part B: 

Regeneration, repair and cancer control, which focuses on the physiological and 

pathophysiological responses following surgery including healing and lack of healing; tissue 

regeneration & compensations; cancer as a model of surgical success or failure. This is followed by 

Perioperative Medicine which explores the areas of anaesthesia and pain relief from the perspective 

of the science underlying the clinical practices. The 3 major areas covered are mechanisms of 

anaesthetic action; mechanisms of analgesic action; applied pharmacology. Next is Technology and 

Clinical Safety which aims to allow the students to develop an understanding of the importance of 

infection & immunity in relation to surgery and the ways in which these affect the healing process. 

The components of the module are, sepsis and shock; peri- and post- operative infections; 

transplantation biology. The term finishes with Bioengineering advances in surgery which focuses 

on the application of engineering principles to the fields of medicine and surgery and will include, biomaterials 

and the genetic basis of bio-mechanical disorder. 

Term Two: The Spring term begins with the final module, Technology and clinical safety. The 

main components of the module are technology and safety. On the technology side the emphasis is 

on minimally invasive surgery and imaging techniques while the clinical safety element includes 

studies of errors and adverse events in surgery and assessment of technical skills and team 

performance in the operating theatre. Module 3 is followed by a short revision period before 

examination of modules 1-3. After the exams students commence project work or take a further two 

modules on a specialist. 

Term Three: The summer term commences with continuation of the research project or specialist 

course. At the end of these, students are assessed by an oral presentation of their studies and a 

project write-up (approximately 5000 words) or a mini-project write-up and two other pieces of 

coursework, respectively. 

18. Support provided to students to assist learning (including collaborative students, where 

appropriate). (The description should include information about the induction programme, welfare 

and pastoral support, library and other facilities available to students, personal tutoring, and access 

to teaching and learning support services, English language support, feedback to students and 

dissemination of actions taken as a result): 

• A course guide provides more detailed information (also published electronically). 

• The Medicine Undergraduate Teaching Intranet. 

• Additional information provided on Faculty/Department Intranet. 

• Extensive library (7-day, 24h opening in term time) and other learning resources and 

facilities at South Kensington campus. 

• Dedicated computing, printing and copying facilities (including scanning) with extended 

daily access , and providing e-mail, on-line journals, journal databases (e.g. Web of 

Science, Medline). Log-on facility (VPN) from outside College. 

• Modern teaching laboratories and access where appropriate to adjacent research facilities. 

• A staff - student liaison group. 

• In addition to the Course Director and Module Leaders, all students are allocated personal 

tutors whose role is both pastoral and academic. 


• Student email and open personal access to tutorial staff including the Course Director, 

Module Leaders, Project Co-ordinators, Course Administrator and the Deputy Head of 

Division (Teaching). 

• Access to the Officers of the Medics Student Union (based in the Sir Alexander Fleming 

Building). 

• Access to the Senior Welfare Tutor for Year 4 (BSc), Faculty of Medicine. 

• The Director of Education. 

• The Faculty Education Office (FEO) who provide a first point of contact for all matters 

concerning students. 

• Access to student counsellors on the South Kensington site. 

• Access to Teaching and Learning Support Services, which provide assistance and 

guidance, e.g. on careers. 

• Opportunities for students to conduct their Final Year Research Projects in other 

Departments/Centres within Imperial College London. 

19. Criteria for admission: 

All students will have met the minimum entrance requirements for the School of Medicine MBBS/BSc 

programme and have successfully completed years 1and 2 and the assigned Foundation Course 

task. 

20. Processes used to select students: 

The selection of students for the BSc operates via student BSc choice submission and allocation of 

the students to BSc based on their submitted choices and academic performance in Years 1 and 2. A 

BSc Appeals procedure is in place to ensure that students unsatisfied with their original BSc choice 

and allocation can be considered for re-allocation to another course, subject to available places and 

satisfactory academic performance. 

21. Methods for evaluating and improving the quality and standards of teaching and learning 

Information regarding College-level practices is outlined below. Please amend this as appropriate to 

incorporate details of departmental activity. 

a) Methods for review and evaluation of teaching, learning, assessment, the curriculum and 

outcome standards: 

The external examiner system and Boards of Examiners are central to the process by which the 

College monitors the reliability and validity of its assessment procedures and academic standards. 

Boards of Examiners comment on the assessment procedures within the College and may suggest 

improvements for action by relevant departmental teaching Committees. 

The Faculty Studies Committees review and consider the reports of external examiners and 

accrediting bodies and conduct periodic (normally quinquennial) and internal reviews of teaching 

provision. Regular reviews ensure that there is opportunity to highlight examples of good practice and 

ensure that recommendations for improvement can be made. 

At programme level, the Head of Department/ has overall responsibility for academic standards and 

the quality of the educational experience delivered within the department or division. 

Most of the College’s undergraduate programmes are accredited by professional engineering and 

science bodies or by the General Medical Council. Accreditation provides the College with additional 

assurance that its programmes are of an appropriate standard and relevant to the requirement of 

industry and the professions. 

Mechanisms for evaluation of teaching, learning, assessment, the curriculum and outcome 

standards 

• Annual course review undertaken by the Faculty of Medicine BSc Quality Assurance group 

of the Education Committee Year 4 – BSc. The review will be considered by the 

Education Committee Year 4 – BSc and will cover all aspects of the course including 

progression and degree statistics, External Examiner Reports, student feedback and peer 

review [see below], feedback from module leaders and other staff. 

• Staff – Student Liaison Group Year 4. 


• College Student On-Line Lecturer Evaluation (SOLE) and in-house course questionnaires 

organised by module convenors. 

• Biennial staff appraisals by Section Heads, reviewed by the Head of Department. 

• Peer teaching observations, which are monitored by the Deputy Head of Department 

(Teaching). 

• External Examiner reports. 

• Departmental Executive Committee. 

• Review by the Quality Assurance Agency. 

• Reviews by the GMC. 

b) Committees with responsibility for monitoring and evaluating quality and standards: 

The Senate oversees the quality assurance and regulation of degrees offered by the College. It is 

charged with promoting the academic work of the College, both in teaching and research, and with 

regulating and supervising the education and discipline of the students of the College. It has 

responsibility for approval of changes to the Academic Regulations, major changes to degree 

programmes and approval of new programmes. 

The Quality Assurance Advisory Committee (QAAC) is the main forum for discussion of QA policy 

and the regulation of degree programmes at College level. QAAC develops and advises the Senate 

on the implementation of codes of practice and procedures relating to quality assurance and audit of 

quality and arrangements necessary to ensure compliance with national and international standards. 

QAAC also considers amendments to the Academic Regulations before making recommendations for 

change to the Senate. It also maintains an overview of the statistics on completion rates, 

withdrawals, examination irregularities (including cases of plagiarism), student appeals and 

disciplinaries. 

The Faculty Studies Committees are the major vehicle for the quality assurance of undergraduate 

courses. Their remit includes: setting the standards and framework, and overseeing the processes of 

quality assurance, for the areas within their remit; monitoring the provision and quality of e-learning; 

undertaking reviews of new and existing courses; noting minor changes in existing programme 

curricula approved by Departments; approving new modules, changes in module titles, major changes 

in examination structure and programme specifications for existing programmes; and reviewing 

proposals for new programmes, and the discontinuation of existing programmes, and making 

recommendations to Senate as appropriate. 

The Faculty Teaching Committees maintain and develop teaching strategies and promote interdepartmental 

and inter-faculty teaching activities to enhance the efficiency of teaching within 

Faculties. They also identify and disseminate examples of good practice in teaching. 

Departmental Teaching Committees have responsibility for the approval of minor changes to 

course curricula and examination structures and approve arrangements for course work. They also 

consider the details of entrance requirements and determine departmental postgraduate student 

numbers. The Faculty Studies Committees and the Graduate School Postgraduate Quality 

Committees receive regular reports from the Departmental Teaching Committees. 

Committees with responsibility for monitoring and evaluating quality and standards 


• Faculty of Medicine BSc Quality Assurance group. 

• Faculty of Medicine Education Committee Year 4 – BSc. 

• Medical Studies Committee. 

• Departmental Executive Committee. 

• Board and Sub-Board of Examiners – meets to consider final degrees. 

• Examinations and Assessments Committee. 

• College Undergraduate Studies Committee. 

• College Quality Assurance Committee (with student representation). 

• Imperial College, Senate 


c) Mechanisms for providing prompt feedback to students on their performance in course 

work and examinations and processes for monitoring that these named processes are 

effective: 

The following regulations and guidelines for feedback on student performance apply: 

• There is no definitive College ruling on the means of providing assessment results for 

coursework other than that that marks should be released to students after confirmation by 

the Board of Examiners. Course tutors should ensure that the students are given 

appropriate feedback on their work by issuing marks indicative of the boundaries within 

which the actual marks fall (i.e. first class; upper second; lower second; third; pass; fail) 

according to the following criteria: 

• Marks should only be given for coursework which contributes to the assessment of a 

discrete course element, e.g. practical write-ups, coursework essays. 

• Marks should not be issued for major discrete course elements, e.g. final year projects and 

dissertations prior to the meeting of the Board of Examiners. Detailed information of marks 

for elements of formal examinations (Part B) can only be released to a student after he/she 

had submitted a request under the Freedom of Information Act to Registry that is liable to 

a fee. Granted requests allow the student access to his/her script under supervision by a 

member of the FEO. The granted requests do not allow copying of documents or 

subsequent discussion of assigned marks with examiners. 

• Marks for any element of work should be released simultaneously to the entire cohort of 

students after undergoing departmental moderation procedure 

• Students must be informed that all marks released are provisional until confirmed by the 

Board of Examiners. Any noted justifications for issued marks should be maintained for at 

least a year. 

• Coursework should normally be marked and returned to provide feedback within two 

weeks of the deadline for submission. 

• As good practice, it is recommended that the BSc courses use an approved In-course 

Assessment Feedback form for feedback on student performance in the in-course 

assessment of the Part B modules and the BSc Foundation course. 

d) Mechanisms for gaining student feedback on the quality of teaching and their learning 

experience and how students are provided with feedback as to actions taken as a result of 

their comments: 


• Faculty of Medicine Education Committee Year 4 – BSc - student representative. 

• Feedback sessions for each module and SOLE 

• Faculty Education Office, Personal Tutors, Senior Welfare Tutor for the BSc (FoM), 

Course Directors and Module Leaders. 

Vivas with External Examiners. 

e) Mechanisms for monitoring the effectiveness of the personal tutoring system: 

The BSc Welfare Tutoring system, introduced from 2009/10, is designed to cater for the welfare 

needs of BSc students coming off the clinical Year 3. In Year 4, the BSc students will retain their 

clinical tutor but will also have an allocated BSc course tutor. The BSc Welfare tutoring system will be 

overseen by the Senior Welfare Tutor for the BSc in the Faculty of Medicine, the Head of 

Undergraduate Medicine, and the established committee structure for the BSc, beginning with the. 

Staff-Student Liaison Group - Year 4 (SSLG 4). 

f) Mechanisms for recognising and rewarding excellence in teaching and in pastoral care: 

Staff are encouraged to reflect on their teaching, in order to introduce enhancements and develop 

innovative teaching methods. Each year College awards are presented to academic staff for 

outstanding contributions to teaching, pastoral care or research supervision. A special award for 

Teaching Innovation, available each year, is presented to a member of staff who has demonstrated 

an original and innovative approach to teaching. Nominations for these awards come from across the 

College and students are invited both to nominate staff and to sit on the deciding panels. 

g) Staff development priorities for this programme include: 

• College and Faculty of Medicine Staff Development Courses; 

• staff appraisal scheme and institutional staff development courses; 


• active encouragement of membership of the ILTHE; new Lecturers are encouraged to take 

the Certificate of Advanced Study in Learning and Teaching [CASLAT] run by the Imperial 

College Centre for Educational Development; 

• College Teaching Development and Teaching Research Grant Schemes to fund the 

development of, and research into, new teaching and appraisal methods; 

• Updating professional and IT/computing developments. 

22. Regulation of Assessment (you may find the following link useful when completing this section: 

http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/registry/information/academicregulations) 

a) Assessment Rules and Degree Classification: 

For undergraduate programmes classification of degrees will be according to the following range of 

marks: 

First class 70 - 100% 

Second class (upper division) 60 - 69.9% 

Second class (lower division) 50 - 59.9% 

Third class 40 - 49.9% 

Where appropriate, a Board of Examiners may award a result of merit where a candidate has 

achieved an aggregate mark of 60% or greater across the programme as a whole AND has obtained 

a mark of 60% or greater in each element with the exception of one element AND has obtained a 

mark of 50% or greater in this latter element. 

Where appropriate, a Board of Examiners may award a result of distinction where a candidate has 

achieved an aggregate mark of 70% or greater across the programme as a whole AND has obtained 

a mark of 70% or greater in each element with the exception of one element AND has obtained a 

mark of 60% or greater in this latter element. 

Assessment in the BSc in Medical Sciences with Surgery and Anaesthesia 

The BSc Foundation course in Year 3 is assessed via course work only. The in-course assessment 

will comprise one compulsory piece, the type of which will be at the discretion of the course organiser. 

The BSc Introductory course in Year 4 is assessed via course work only. The in-course assessment 

will comprise one compulsory piece, the type of which will be at the discretion of the course organiser. 

The BSc, Part B, is assessed via in-course assessment – 2 compulsory pieces for each of the three 

Part B modules, contributing a total of 30% of the module’s mark, and a written examination paper, 

part of the Part B examination, contributing 70% of the overall module mark. 

Part C of the BSc is assessed 1) for students undertaking a BSc Project: via a project write-up, 

contributing 70% to the overall Part C mark, an oral presentation of the project, contributing 20% of 

the overall Part C mark, and a mark of the performance of the student during the project, contributing 

10% of the overall Part C mark; and 2) for students undertaking a specialist course: via in-course 

assessment – two pieces contributing a total of 40% (20% each) of the overall Part C mark, a miniproject 

write-up, contributing 30% of the overall Part C mark, an oral presentation of the mini-project, 

contributing 20% of the overall Part C mark, and a mark of the performance of the student during the 

mini-project, contributing 10% of the overall Part C mark. 

b) Marking Schemes for undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes: 

The Pass Mark for all undergraduate modules is 40%. From October 2008 entry all undergraduates 

are required to pass all their course units to progress to the next year. 

c) Processes for dealing with mitigating circumstances: 

For undergraduate programmes: Candidates with mitigating circumstances are not subject to the 

borderline restrictions but should be considered individually. However, as a general principle, 

candidates whose marks are more than 5% below the borderline should not normally be raised to the 

next higher classification. Where the Board of Examiners determines that a higher classification 

should be awarded extra marks should be applied to bring the final marks into the higher range. 


Applications, which must be accompanied by a medical certificate or other statement of the grounds 

on which the application is made, shall be submitted to the Academic Registrar who will submit them 

to the Board of Examiners. 

d) Processes for determining degree classification for borderline candidates: 

For undergraduate programmes: Candidates who fall no more than 2.5% below the minimum mark 

for a higher honours classification shall be eligible for review of their final classification; this review 

could include an oral examination or practical test or other mechanism appropriate to the discipline. 

Candidates whose marks are below the 2.5% borderline may be considered for a higher honours 

classification where certain provisions apply. Where the Board of Examiners determines that a 

candidate should be awarded a higher honours classification extra marks should be applied to bring 

their final marks into the higher range. Detailed records of all decisions should be recorded in the 

minutes of the meeting of the Board. 

e) Role of external examiners: 

The primary duty of external examiners is to ensure that the degrees awarded by the College are 

consistent with that of the national university system. External examiners are also responsible for 

approval of draft question papers, assessment of examination scripts, projects and coursework 

(where appropriate) and in some cases will attend viva voce and clinical examinations. Although 

external examiners do not have power of veto their views carry considerable weight and will be 

treated accordingly. External examiners are required to attend each meeting of the Board of 

Examiners where recommendations on the results of individual examinations are considered. 

External examiners are required to write an annual report to the Rector of Imperial College which may 

include observations on teaching, course structure and course content as well as the examination 

process as a whole. The College provides feedback to external examiners in response to 

recommendations made within their reports. 

23. Indicators of Quality and Standards (e.g. accreditation reports): 

• Favourable comments by External Examiners. 

• Prize winning presentations and publications 

• Independent review of the quality of the educational provision of the Department by the 

Quality Assurance Agency subject review and by the GMC. 

24. Key sources of information about the programme can be found in (links to course handbook, 

prospectus, departmental website, syllabus etc): 

https://education.med.imperial.ac.uk/Years/4-1011/surg/index.htm

Programme Specification for the BSc in Medical Sciences with ...

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